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Local Gyms Outpace the National Chains

Exercisers often are happier at smaller local gyms, a new survey finds. (Hiroko Masuike for The New York Times)

If your New Year’s resolution includes going back to the gym, you may be happier at a local club than a national chain, according to a new survey by Consumer Reports.

In its first-ever survey of health clubs, the magazine polled more than 10,000 subscribers who had visited a gym in the past six months. Gym-goers gave opinions on staff, equipment, classes, crowds, cleanliness and billing issues. Included in the group were 3,400 respondents who gave their reasons for canceling a gym membership during the previous three years.

Notably, national health club chains fared the poorest in the survey. The magazine found that private studios for yoga, dance or Pilates and gyms at local community centers, schools, work and nonprofit Jewish Community Centers and Y.M.C.A.’s received the best marks. National chains were often criticized for long wait times for machines, problems with contracts or fees, poorer cleanliness and less adequate locker rooms than other gyms.

“Consumers can pay up to $95 a month to join a health club and get certain extras like personal training sessions and spa services, but CR’s survey indicated that they might be happier spending a lot less,” said Jamie Kopf Hirsh, an associate editor at Consumer Reports. “There are some great values to be found at the gyms at Y’s, community centers and J.C.C.’s.”

One national chain did well in the ratings. Life Time Fitness received high marks for its equipment, locker rooms and classes, and for being open 24 hours a day.

The survey also found that paid gym memberships come with a fair share of administrative hassles. Among respondents with memberships, nearly one out of five reported having had a problem with contracts or fees, such as an unexpected dues hike or inability to freeze a membership temporarily during an expected absence. Thirty-eight percent of respondents who had canceled a membership to a big chain complained it took excessive time and effort to cancel, and that they received bills after cancellation and had other problems.

Although big chains didn’t score well, one advantage is that they often offer extras like personal training, child care, spa services and electronic tracking systems that allow members to monitor their workout progress. J.C.C.’s and Y.M.C.A.’s often offer classes tailored to specific groups, including kids, women and seniors. College and university gyms provide greater access to large-scale athletic facilities such as basketball courts and even climbing walls. The survey found that nearly a third of college gyms had large-scale facilities compared to 10 percent of commercial clubs. Meanwhile, gyms in apartment buildings or housing complexes are viewed as convenient but tend to have limited equipment.

The magazine recommends insisting on a trial membership before signing up and visiting the gym during the week, weekends and different times of day to gauge the conditions.

The full report on health clubs is available in the February 2008 issue of Consumer Reports. Portions of the story are available for free online.

Locally owned gyms are more concerned with being supportive of the community and getting to know their members’ fitness goals and general health. Chains seem to care only about getting your check on time.

I used to go to 24 hour fitness and it was all flourescent lights, mirrors, noise, disco beats and televisions. I tried to transfer my membership from one facility to another when I changed jobs and I felt like I was talking to a used car salesman. At the time, my stuff was the stairmaster and yoga. So, I used my new employer’s little gym and joined a yoga studio. The yoga studio has brick walls, nice hardwood floors, soft lighting, a pretty view, and is walking distance from my house. Later, I joined a local health club that is not a franchise and it was in a quirky and fun building that had lots of small rooms and a no-music policy. It went out of business and I found yet another local club with oodles of amenities. I cannot transfer my membership – I learned to never buy a year in advance again – but you won’t see me at a chain.A local club is about the local people. A national chain is about the average. You can’t expect a tofu sucking yoga pretzel like me to be into the “trim your thighs t o catch a man” nonsense I saw at the chain gym. (I am sure that someone who wants to catch a man with her thighs would be living in a different region and have different options than me.)

“Consumers can pay up to $95 a month to join a health club and get certain extras like personal training sessions and spa services, but CR’s survey indicated that they might be happier spending a lot less,” said Jamie Kopf Hirsh, an associate editor at Consumer Reports.

Um, did Consumer Reports check prices at NYC gyms lately? Consumers can pay up to $145 a month and more at Equinox, Sports Club LA, etc.

Well you know, the best way to catch a man with your thighs is to take up jujitsu. Then, not only can you catch him with said sleek thighs but throttle him until he taps out. It’s really quite entertaining.

What is really important to continuing with a fitness program is a learning curve, treadmills are for mice not men. But in dance, martial arts, yoga, you actually acquire skills and that’s what makes you stay with a healthy fitness program, benefits to the mind, not just the body.

YMCAs and other not-for-profit/community-based fitness facilities are hands down superior to commercial gyms. Their equipment, fitness class offerings, and personal training services are just as good if not better than for-profit gyms and cost, as the article says, FAR less. I shell out $55 a month for all the fitness resources I could want and a steam room & sauna to boot. But just as important, the atmosphere at the Y is (in my experience) nonthreatening and easy-going. Rather than being a meat market or a parade ground for elite athletes/showoffs, the Y attracts people of all ages, social groups, and fitness levels. There’s often a spirit of camaraderie or neighborliness that just doesn’t happen elsewhere. I joined my local Y a year ago and it changed my life in a thousand positive ways. I’m so glad to hear that other folks prefer the community-based, not-for-profit places too.

We’ve found that the Y, both when we lived near Albany, NY and near Raleigh are great values and great places for families. But don’t be scared off, single folks! In my single days I belonged to the Y in Albany because the racquetball courts and locker rooms at my university were awful; the Y, by contrast, was walking distance from home and office, had decent machines, and was friendly. Now that I have kids, and live near Raleigh, our Y has parents nights out where the kids play, a great pool (the envy of private clubs) and other amenities. All for about $90 for the whole family.

Everything Buckeye in Beantown said about his Y, I can say the same about my gym–Life Time Fitness. I belonged to a YWCA a few years ago, but it didn’t have enough treadmills (I’m a marathon runner and rely on them during the frigid Minnesota winters!); the YW required its members to sign up for them in 20 minute slots with a 2-slot max per machine. After work, it got really frustrating having to hop from machine to machine to get in a 90-minute-plus run. There seemed to be a sign-up sheet/number-taking policy for everything, which was cumbersome and stressful.

All that said, at Life Time I pay around $55/month (minus my $15 break from Blue Cross/Blue Shield), about the same I was paying at the YWCA. Unlike the latter, LTF doesn’t charge for towels–a small gesture wit a huge benefit for a forgetful person like myself!–and has no sign-up sheets and plenty of equipment, so there’s a natural rotation. I also get a sense of community and, honestly, don’t feel any body envy or competition. Having belonged to both types of gyms, I haven’t noticed a marked difference between the locals who choose a corporate gym and those who choose a not-for-profit. No matter where you are, we’re all “local” and have come to the same place to sweat, decompress, and have fun.

I have nothing against local, independently-owned gyms–my husband teaches classes at one, which I visit when I can make the trek, and I also belong to a local rock climbing gym. I’m sure there are money-grubbing corporates out there (had a couple unsavory experiences with Bally’s a long time ago), but I wanted to provide my own positive perspective and experience as a member at one of the big guys!

From TPP — Well, as the story notes, Lifetime was the only national chain to receive top scores.

I belonged to the local Y for years and loved it! They even had a short term membership plan for college kids home on break. Now I go to a Crunch that is only slightly more expensive than the Y and is right across the street from my house. It’s hands down the best facility I’ve ever belonged to!

If you’ve ever been to the Equinox in NY, you can relate to this article.
– Expensive monthlies.
– No discounts. Take it or leave it attitude.
– Huge transfer charges if you need to move to another location.

Overall, they think they’re the only game in town. I’m glad the Y’s and JCCs are going to take their business.

Since college back in the 80’s, I hadn’t lifted a finger in the direction of fitness except the middle one. Then about two years ago I joined the Crunch down the block from my work, for a company discounted fee of around $65. It’s big, famously non-judgmental and nobody looks at you twice. Plenty of machines, good classes, and I think excellent value for money. Check out gyms near your office: maybe you can organize a multiple-membership discount as well.

Pricewise, one additional bonus is that all YMCAs offer financial assistance to ensure that people who want to join aren’t turned away for an inability to pay, for membership or any of our other programs like day camp and afterschool programs. Anyone interested can just ask. And that goes for any YMCA in the U.S., not just NYC.

Wow, I feel lucky. My $29 a month membership at 24Hour Fitness seems like a bargin. I get my choice of any Gyms near work, or near home. As someone stated earlier, in some way’s they’re all local. The people at my 24 Hour Fitness near my work, are wonderfull, helpful, friendly. The clientele is a mix of young and old, male and female (as an almost 60 YO male, it’s nice to feel like your not competing with the young hardbodies). There’s alway cardio equipment available with no lines or sign up sheets. I guess from the comments, my experience must be unique, but I didn’t think so…..

YMCA’s and community centers don’t have to pay taxes which in essence means they are subsidized by all citizens whether they are members or not. If the chains didn’t have to pay taxes I am sure they could provide more value to their members.

My $29 a month fee is in Northern California on a contract I originally signed about 10 years ago for all club access. (Back when they were 24 Hour Nautilus) They’ve never up-ped the rate on me. My daughter-in-law had a plan that was club specific for on 24 Hour Fitness Express club about 2 years ago, and it was $20 a month.

The Ultimate in Hicksville NY, if you don’t mind the commute, is another small place -in business for about 15 years – that has all the equipment you need- and a nice crowd for $299 a year (no, that wasn’t a typo) and is open 3AM to 11PM weekdays and 7AM to 5Pm weekends.

Bravo to the local gyms. In the old days, you would work out next to the owner, who opened a gym so him (or her) and his buddies would have a place to train.

Most gyms are marketed to the hard body set but it is the real people that show up before work every morning to get in the ultimate destressor.
Too many places have loud music, big screen televisions and intimidating classes the local gym without all the fluff is more appealing.
People should go where they feel comfortable. Because then they will go more often.

You know what’s the ultimate NYC local gym? The NYC Parks and Recreation Department gyms. It costs $50 a YEAR for access to any of them, $75 if you’d like to use the indoor pools. The one near me (114th/1st) is always bright, clean, well-staffed and never too busy. It has lots of machines and weights, a dance studio, an outdoor pool.

DVD – I so hear you w/r/t the Equinox. One just opened here in Miami Beach, and not only does it cost 2x what all of the other gyms are charging, you get the feeling that they might ask you to leave if you actually broke a sweat! You know, it might damage their beautiful hardwood floors and all…..

I belong to two gyms – the corporate 24 Hour Fitness and a local gym up here called Mile High Fitness. The local gym is great – never too busy, good selection of machines and excellent free weights, plus a few cardio machines. Hey – this is a remote mountain town of 3,000 people, so it serves us well. No pool or spa, but that’s fine with me. It runs about $35/mo. My experience with 24 is good, though they should be a bit cleaner. I am in LA 4 days per week, so it comes in handy. I have a all-clubs “Sport” level membership for less than $50/mo. and hass the pool, spa, etc. Sure, it can be busy and a little “meat market” like, but so what. I’m there for my reasons, and when I crank up my ipod and hit the elliptical, the rest of the world recedes anyhow. So I have positive experiences with both, and together they cost less than $80/mo.

Planet Fitness in Fairfield County (multiple locations) is $10 a month, has a huge selection of equipment, is a “judgement free zone”, and is the best gym I have ever used. You are able to go in, do your workout, and leave without feeling like you are on display or competing with other members. Much cheaper and just as nice as the $60-70/month Fitness Edge or NY Sports Clubs. As a physical therapist and former personal trainer, this is the best gym I have ever worked or worked out in.

I’m not a fan of the YMCA. Mostly what I don’t like is what everyone else appears to enjoy–their family and neighborly attitude. I don’t enjoy talking with other men whom I don’t know in the sauna about the latest hockey game or anytning else for that matter. Their equipment (exercise equipment) is also sub-standard though at least they have done away with their sign up sheets for treadmills which have never served any purpose.

What really burns me up is the rediculous need of everyone to wipe down every piece of equipment with windex spray after every use when they clearly have not even broken a sweat. It is such a false sense of security. Wash your hands people!